Lockie Ferguson could miss the entire T20I tri-series against Pakistan and Bangladesh as New Zealand look to defend the fast bowler’s fitness for the T20 World Cup.
The 31-year-old missed last year’s World Cup with a calf tear and, following a minor abdominal injury, New Zealand coach Gary Stead has suggested Ferguson could miss the ongoing tri-series in Christchurch .
The Blackcaps are already without Daryl Mitchell after the bowler fractured his hand in training on Friday, while spinner Mitchell Santner will join the squad on Sunday after paternity leave.
“Lockie has a bit of a stomach injury at the moment. We’re managing it and the most important thing is to get to the start of the World Cup and Lockie is ready to go,” said Stead.
“He’s a very, very important cog in our bowling line-up. Unfortunately for him, he missed last year’s World Cup because of the injury he had then.
“I mean we’re aware of that and we want to make sure he’s fit and ready for those early games in the World Cup.
“There is that chance [of him missing the entire tri-series]. We’ll just see how he responds to treatment over the next few days.”
Adam Milne is another Blackcaps player suffering from persistent injuries, with New Zealand aiming to rebuild the 30-year-old’s fitness ahead of the World Cup later this month.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen Milne in net and he looked really good,” said Stead.
“We’re happy with what we’re seeing there and again he’s coming off a pretty big injury layoff so just managing him and making sure he’s fit is going to be the most important thing for us in these four match”.
As New Zealand struggle for options in their fast bowling department, Mitchell hopes to return to action before the first T20 World Cup match against Australia on October 22.
“Obviously, it’s not ideal timing, but we have some good news about where the fracture is in the hand and the timeline to be ready for the first game in Australia in a couple of weeks,” Mitchell told Spark Sport in. the outskirts of New Zealand’s tri-series opener against Pakistan on Saturday.
“We will do everything we can to be ready and I will be ready to go.”
